Identification Please!

[Mike]

We have all heard these words many times and when we do,
we supply one of the required methods stipulated, Passport,
driving licence, utility bill etc., you all know the drill.

Lately the system here has changed, at the Doctors and the
Pharmacy, "Good morning, date of birth please", then name,
well we might expect this at a medical establishment, last
week I called my landlords customer service to report a problem,
"Good afternoon, date of birth please", then address, name etc.,
today I was opening a new insurance account, for personal
effects, in the home, I called the company I have the car with,
"Good afternoon, date of birth please", then name etc., this
seemed strange to begin with, but now it seems to be the
normal way to identify somebody.

I suppose at my age there are fewer people, still around who
were born in the same year never mind the same day.

Is this similar to what is happening, where you are?

Mike.

 

[RadishRose]

We have all heard these words many times and when we do,
we supply one of the required methods stipulated, Passport,
driving licence, utility bill etc., you all know the drill.

Lately the system here has changed, at the Doctors and the
Pharmacy, "Good morning, date of birth please", then name,
well we might expect this at a medical establishment, last
week I called my landlords customer service to report a problem,
"Good afternoon, date of birth please", then address, name etc.,
today I was opening a new insurance account, for personal
effects, in the home, I called the company I have the car with,
"Good afternoon, date of birth please", then name etc., this
seemed strange to begin with, but now it seems to be the
normal way to identify somebody.

I suppose at my age there are fewer people, still around who
were born in the same year never mind the same day.

Is this similar to what is happening, where you are?

Mike.

Only with medical providers and pharmacies that I know of. Yet.

 

[Knight]

Not to that extent but with the population increasing & fraud a major concern the birth date 1st. may be the difference in an attempt to reduce wrong information flowing both ways. IMO making sure as best as possible that the right Knight is on the phone is a good thing.

 

[Pepper]

For years and years. It's so the techs don't mix up your prescriptions. It's for your safety. They start with birthdate as numbers are easier than names.

 

[hollydolly]

Always had to punch in my DOB at the doctors reception desk... never once been asked for my DOB at the pharmacy, they just ask for my name and first line of my address..

 

[Paco Dennis]

Yes, this just happened to me a few days ago. I have been in a certain medical system for fifteen years. It is BIG. I needed to contact a medical system that is completely independent of the my main one. I was in their system....by being asked those 2 questions...in that order. It shocked me. How did they get my info?

 

[Mike]

Always had to punch in my DOB at the doctors reception desk... never once been asked for my DOB at the pharmacy, they just ask for my name and first line of my address..

That is the system at my surgery hollydolly, when I went to the
pharmacy a couple of months ago, I was handed a piece of paper
and a pen and asked to write my name, there are many immigrants
here whose names are not easy on the ear of an English speaker,
but the last time I went to the pharmacist, two weeks ago, they did
ask for my date of birth.

Mike.

 

[hawkdon]

Yeah, I have had to repeat d.o.b, so much lately I actually remember it.....

 

[Gaer]

Yeah, I have had to repeat d.o.b, so much lately I actually remember it.....

Yes! That's like a phone number! I never call myself!

 

[Pecos]

We have all heard these words many times and when we do,
we supply one of the required methods stipulated, Passport,
driving licence, utility bill etc., you all know the drill.

Lately the system here has changed, at the Doctors and the
Pharmacy, "Good morning, date of birth please", then name,
well we might expect this at a medical establishment, last
week I called my landlords customer service to report a problem,
"Good afternoon, date of birth please", then address, name etc.,
today I was opening a new insurance account, for personal
effects, in the home, I called the company I have the car with,
"Good afternoon, date of birth please", then name etc., this
seemed strange to begin with, but now it seems to be the
normal way to identify somebody.

I suppose at my age there are fewer people, still around who
were born in the same year never mind the same day.

Is this similar to what is happening, where you are?

Mike.

Oh yes, all the time now. It seems a bit intrusive to me.

 

[katlupe]

Just for medical so far.

 

[Pepper]

Oh yes, all the time now. It seems a bit intrusive to me.

The pharmacy already has your birthdate from your insurance records, including medicare. Let's face it, everybody knows us.

 

[Nathan]

The pharmacy already has your birthdate from your insurance records, including medicare. Let's face it, everybody knows us.

We are all cross indexed in several ways across a myriad of databases. A credit card or check can be validated instantly, your medical records are shared between various healthcare providers that use MyChart.

 

[CarolfromTX]

Just the pharmacy and the doctors office. I finally said to the nurse, “You always ask, but nobody ever sends a card!”

 

[fuzzybuddy]

I had a problem. There was a guy, with the same name, who lived a half mile from me. We had the same back specialist. That's how we found out about each other. There was a lot of confusion over appointments. We both used the same pharmacy. So, everybody used our birthdays to identify us. He must have moved away, because I'm not having ID problems anymore.

 

[Disgustedman]

Yep, once made a mistake as I was picking up meds for a friend. You know what freaked me out?

They handed me his meds, but they included Vicodin. I knew how tight Kaiser pharmacies were, but this was crazy.

 

[wcwbf]

at one time, thought being asked dob was an insult?! was i being asked that cuz i'm "old"? were they checking to see if i remembered it?

 

[Chris21E]

Only at a doctor appointment, any one else, NO...

 

[Devi]

I don't mind, at certain facilities, being asked for my date of birth (especially as I have Medicare).

However, a new dentist that I'm going to be seeing has a nice online form to fill out ... but it asked for my Social Security number, with no way to bypass that. (What, are they going to be paying me and taking taxes out?!) Since they don't need my SSN, I skipped their online form and will fill out a (hopefully paper) form when I get there.